Round 1

The fighters touch gloves, referee Marc Goddard calls for action and we are officially underway.

Bonnar rushes Silva and pins him against the fence, working short knees to the legs of the Spider. Silva ties Bonnar up, fending off the takedown and avoiding damage from his opponent.

Not much action as Bonnar continues to work for position. Silva gains double underhooks, but cannot find his way off the fence.

A spin from Silva drops Bonnar to his knees, but he springs back up as quick as he was yanked down.

The fighters separate and Silva casually leans against the cage. He simply waits there, leaning back waiting for Bonnar to re-engage. Bonnar indulges, but Silva bobs and weaves out of the way, landing a quick punch of his own, before he's tied back up.

Silva pushes Bonnar off with a trip, sending him stumbling to the floor. Silva chases Bonnar down and as he attempts to regain his footing, Silva blasts him with a massive knee to the chest that crumples the American Psycho.

Silva jumps on his wounded prey and puts him away with a flurry that ends the fight at the 4:40 mark of the very first round.

What's Next for Anderson Silva?

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After the fight Joe Rogan asked Silva if he plans to fight again at 205 pounds, to which Silva responded in the negative.

While that won't exactly fan the flames of speculation for a Silva vs. Jon Jones super-fight, something is telling me the idea won't go away entirely. Even if both men continue to express disinterest in the possibility.

Yet, there are plenty of 185ers currently vying for the UFC middleweight title, so Silva certainly could return there to find some action. The UFC is still figuring out who Silva's next challenger will be, but as of now, frontrunners include Michael Bisping, Chris Weidman and Tim Boetsch. And Alan Belcher and Vitor Belfort aren't far behind.

Since Silva took essentially no damage at UFC 153 it is conceivable that he'd be ready to fight Bisping early next year, while Weidman and Boetsch settle a December score for the next place in line.

Alternatively, there's that Georges St-Pierre vs. Silva scenario, but the welterweight champion will have to get by Carlos Condit, and possibly the winner of Martin Kampmann vs. Johny Hendricks, before this hypothetical becomes more realistic.

So of all the potential routes available to Silva at this point, fending off middleweight contenders seems the most likely.

What's Next for Stephan Bonnar?

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Bonnar has been flirting with retirement, and the result he found tonight will likely encourage him to pursuit that course.

It will be hard for Bonnar to come back to a fight that is so much less meaningful to him than the one he just had, and there was nothing in his performance tonight that suggests he is close enough to get another one like this down the road.